Male Dwarf Gourami Help

[FishGO]

Hi everyone,
 
New here and only began looking after fish around 2 months ago so go easy!
 
Basically, a couple of days ago I bought 2 'male' dwarf gourami from 'Pets at home' (UK).
 
I asked the assisant for 2 of the 'younger' guys to watch them develop, so not having a great knowledge on the species i assumed 2 of the much smaller grey/silver fish were simply younger but I am now beginning to believe they may be female. I am at work and havent realised until now this was possible, will need to check the fin shape once im home but just wondering if there is any more give-aways?
 
Just now the base of both show a very thin red/orange line of colour, is this the beginning of the well known red colour spreading whilst the fish are young or a typical female? Personally i will be a little dissapointed with 2 females as i simply wanted to add a little colour to the tank, whilst watching the fish flourish. They are considerably smaller than the other fish available, here's hoping im going to watch them burst into colour but if not please let me know and any pointers with caring for them then let me know!
 
Thanks
 
 

 

[the_lock_man]

Without a piccy, it is impossible to tell, but they sound female.

 

[MBOU]

They do sound female but hard to tell, at worst, you could just add a male as well?

 

[FishGO]

They do sound female but hard to tell, at worst, you could just add a male as well?

Exactly my plan, still happy to have them and will be nice to see them along side a male, interesting regardless just needed any experience anyone may have had.

 

[leighton_87]

Depending on the size of your tank - two males would be likely to fight and potentially cause each other serious harm.

1 male to two females
Would be a perfect mix if you do confirm they are females.

 

[CezzaXV]

They sound like they're probably female, but this is a good thing as two males would likely fight!

It's very important that you do your research before buying any fish. Don't count on the people in the shop to know what they're talking about.

 

[sadguppy]

Be glad you didn't end up with two males! They can be horrid bullies. Get one for your ladies, if space allows, and you should enjoy more harmonious living!

 

[FishGO]

Thanks for the help everyone. I wasn't aware 2 males would've been an issue, shame i placed too much faith in the assisstant who served me.
 
Judging by the fin shape i am 90% sure both are female, although i now have an issue i seriously need some guidance on.
 
One of the females is fine, acting the way i have read they would, no problems there. The other however has a cut or atleast a handfull of scales have came off behind the pectoral fin on one side, im not sure if this is due to another fish or perhaps some kind of infection is starting? its only been 3 days and last night was the first time i noticed.. it was hiding at the bottom under a plant, staying there all night..
 
i have 3 white tip tetra, 2 black widow tetra and 1 albino black widow tetra, the albino being the most aggressive by far.
 
Is this just a minor injury i can just keep an eye on? well known problem? anyway to avoid it?

 

[MBOU]

Hate to say it... but sounds bacterial... or worse still the start of dwarf gourami disease....

 

[FishGO]

Hate to say it... but sounds bacterial... or worse still the start of dwarf gourami disease....

After reading about it and having a flick through some pics.. it looks like DGD Very frustrating to say the least! will carry out 25% water change and hopefully see some progress. If not how do pet stores return policies work? Does the fish have to die first or within a certain time frame? Dont mean to sound ruthless, and its nothing to do with the money more the annoyance that its happened outwith my control and the assisstant never even bothered to mention whilst being fully aware i am a beginner. But hey i'll give it my best shot and hope the little guy pulls through

 

[Gilli]

Its easy to sex gouramis - the females fin on top is short and round - the males is long and pointed and reaches the base of the tail.

 

[CezzaXV]

The trouble is that you need no qualifications or experience to be able to get a job in a fish shop. While we would hope that the people who work there would mention things you would need to know about, there is no other shop in the world where you walk in and expect the workers to know everything about every product they sell, but people expect it of fish shops. I don't understand.

 

[FishGO]

Thanks for the help everyone, went and bought anti-inflamitory/fungal medicine after seeking a little advice, applied it last night and a few hours later sadly the badly swollen DG died, first fish ive had die and a little gutted but the other female is looking well so here's hoping it was only stress related from being bought..

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I'd suggest doing a MASSIVE water change ASAP on the tank... DGD is contagious, so getting as much of the contagion out of the water, the better - for the sake of the other one.  This disease is apparently, species specific, so the others should be safe, but good husbandry generally suggests a 50% water change after any death, as the dead fish's body produces (more exactly the bacteria, etc. decomposing it) ammonia.


Better safe than sorry... Stress can leave the fish vulnerable to secondary infections, etc. So, the stress hypothesis is a valid one, but it doesn't discount the secondary infection being DGD.